Upgrading the Network Backbone to Gigabit Ethernet


Today Gigabit Ethernet has arrived, in a big way. You won't find many people using Gigabit to the desktop yet (although in some high-end environments, such as video production, you just might). But as a backbone transport, Gigabit is an ideal replacement for Fast Ethernet or other protocols used to transfer high-bandwidth traffic.

The initial cost for implementing Gigabit Ethernet as a backbone transport doesn't have to be a large expense. Consider what happens when you replace local switches and network adapter cardsa large expense can be involved due to the high number of workstations and switch ports required.

However, if you're replacing a switch that consolidates traffic from these existing switches, you have only to replace these switches and possibly the cabling between these switches. Consider the collapsed backbone topology discussed in Chapter 2, "Overview of Network Topologies." You don't replace every departmental LAN switch. Instead, a collapsed backbone means that department level switches all feedback to a single larger switch that controls traffic between each of the departmental switches. So, if the departmental switches satisfy your users' needs, you'd have to replace only the central switch that connects them. Gigabit (and now 10 Gigabit Ethernet) is ideal for network backbone transport. You can use this technology to connect backbone switches to others in different buildings in a campus environment, and further localize network traffic. It will still be a few years before it's used to the desktop.




Upgrading and Repairing Networks
Upgrading and Repairing Networks (5th Edition)
ISBN: 078973530X
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2006
Pages: 411

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